The day had finally arrived.
The day they would depart to the Soulrealm.
For most of the students, this was a moment filled with anticipation, anxiety, and silent prayers.
For Hope—
It was just another day.
They were gathered in a vast hall, the air thick with an unspoken tension.
The walls stretched endlessly, lined with rows upon rows of strange mechanical pods.
"As we mentioned earlier," one of the instructors began, his voice echoing across the hall, "these are Soulpods."
Hope barely listened.
He had heard this explanation before.
The Soulpods were life-support devices.
A safeguard.
They stabilized the body's vitals while their souls were sent to the Soulrealm.
"Now, all of you—climb into your assigned pods."
The students hesitated—
Then moved.
Hope glanced around, his sharp eyes scanning the rows of pods until he spotted the number assigned to him.
C-53.
He approached it.
The pod was larger up close, its smooth metallic frame reflecting the bright, sterile lights of the hall.
With a quiet sigh, he climbed inside.
The interior was cold.
Not unbearably so, but just enough to make his skin prickle.
Then—
Water.
It was already filling the pod, submerging his body inch by inch.
Hope didn't resist.
He moved with the fluid motion of experience, they had been trained before. reaching for the oxygen mask and securing it over his face.
A small hiss of air escaped as the seal locked into place.
Then—
He leaned back, resting his head against the smooth inner surface.
The transparent lid of the pod began to close.
A mechanical hum filled the space, the sound muffled by the rising water.
Then—
Mist.
It was thin at first, barely noticeable—
But within seconds, it swirled like smoke, curling around him in soft, hypnotic waves.
Hope felt his mind slipping.
His thoughts became sluggish.
His breathing—
Steady.
Calm.
The last thing he saw—
Were the glowing white bulbs above him—
The sterile ceiling reflecting off the surface of the water—
Before everything turned to black.
Hope had expected to arrive in a place similar to the environment in his first trail.
The Eight Moons.
The ruined buildings.
The twisted landscape that had long since been claimed by the Veil.
But instead—
His senses were assaulted by something far worse.
Wind.
Howling, violent, deafening wind.
And then—
Gravity.
He wasn't floating.
No.
He was falling.
Plummeting at a terrifying speed.
His body twisted mid-air, and for a brief moment, he had a full view of the endless abyss below.
And what he saw made his stomach lurch.
Nothing.
No buildings.
No trees.
No soft terrain.
Just an expanse of hard, cracked earth that stretched endlessly.
A direct impact would be—
Fatal.
If it wasn't for the intense training and scenario drills at the Academy, he wouldn't have even had the time to think.
Panic was the enemy.
Hope forced his instincts to take control.
With a sharp breath, he clenched his arms tight against his sides, reducing drag and stabilizing his fall.
The wind howled past his ears, his vision blurring from the sheer velocity.
Then—
He spotted something.
A dark-colored mound far below.
Sand.
It wasn't much.
But it was his only option.
Adjusting his body angle, Hope angled himself toward the target.
The ground rushed up at an alarming rate.
Seconds away.
His heartbeat thundered in his chest.
Then—
Impact.
He struck the sand heap at a vicious speed—
And immediately rolled.
Not out of pain, but out of necessity.
The Academy had drilled it into them: momentum kills.
If he allowed his body to stiffen, the force of impact would have shattered his bones on the spot.
So he let himself roll.
Tumbling violently.
Over and over.
The world spun in a blur of motion until finally—
He came to a stop.
Pain exploded through his body, the shock rattling his bones.
Hope gritted his teeth.
Everything hurt.
Bruises covered his arms and legs, but—
Nothing was broken.
Slowly, he pushed himself up, his muscles protesting the movement.
Then, tilting his head back, he glared at the sky.
And cursed.
"Damn you, Veil."
His fists clenched as he steadied his breath.
His welcome to the Soulrealm had been—
Unpleasant.
Hope took his time to adjust.
His breathing slowed.
His senses sharpened.
And then, for the first time since his violent descent, he took in his surroundings.
And his breath caught.
The land before him was vast.
Endless.
So massive that even with his awakened eyesight—which was far superior to that of mundane humans—he couldn't see the end.
The terrain stretched for miles in every direction, a barren wasteland of cracked, parched ground.
No vegetation.
No rivers.
Not a single sign of life.
But the most unsettling thing—
Was the sky.
Or rather, what replaced it.
There were no stars.
No clouds.
No true horizon.
Just a vast, dull expanse of swirling gray—a sky that seemed dead.
Lifeless.
As if the entire world had been abandoned by time itself.
A deep unease settled in his chest.
Then, as if reality decided to hit him even harder—
Hope looked down.
And froze.
His entire body was exposed to the scorching heat.
He was stark naked.
"Damnation."
The curse slipped out instinctively.
Now that he thought about it—he had been incredibly lucky to have retained his clothing during his first trial as a contestant.
But this time…
The Veil had robbed him of everything.
His skin burned.
The merciless sun—or whatever counted as a sun in this cursed realm—beat down upon him like an open flame.
He winced as he touched his shoulder.
Already, he could feel the sting of an oncoming sunburn.
"Damn this heat…" he muttered.
But standing around wasn't an option.
He needed to move.
Hope scanned his surroundings one last time, then—
Without hesitation—began walking.
Time passed.
Minutes.
Hours.
Hope had no way of knowing.
With no sun movement, no shadows to track, and no landmarks to gauge distance, he was left wandering blindly across the cracked terrain.
His feet ached.
His body protested.
But he pushed forward.
Then—
In the distance—
Something caught his eye.
A structure.
Partially buried in the dried, crumbling earth.
Hope's steps quickened.
As he got closer, the details sharpened—
It was the remains of a collapsed building.
A ruin.
Half-sunken into the ground.
Despite its decay, the structure still provided one crucial thing—
Shade.
Hope wasted no time.
He stepped inside, immediately sighing in relief as the oppressive heat lessened.
The shadows of the ruin offered a much-needed reprieve, even if the air was still dry and suffocating.
For the first time since arriving, he allowed himself to breathe.
His body slumped against a crumbling pillar, muscles aching from exhaustion.
Then, under his breath, he muttered—
"An armor memory would be real nice right about now..."
His fingers brushed against his bare skin.